My husband and I will be moving in the next 2-3 months, and although we'd like a nice small acreage, a house that we are seriously considering has only 0.60 of an acre. As disappointing as that is for me (the wannabe farmer), I'm interested in tackling a challenge to see how we could make Nigerian dwarfs work in that amount of space. I'm hoping to purchase two doelings/pregnant does in the spring of 2015. Obviously, this amount of land doesn't offer the same opportunities for herd establishment as I would like, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing--with two little children and a third to arrive this September, I'm sure I already have plenty to keep myself busy with. I'd sell the babies, once ready, to other homesteading types or as 4H projects and just keep two does at a time (although I totally want to establish an invasive weed fighting team of cute wethers one day).
My question is about setting up the "goat area" in the most efficient way possible. There is already a little baby barn on the property, probably about 8x12 that I thought I'd retrofit into a makeshift barn until we figure out something more fancy or until we move to a larger property. I've attached a word document with a photo in it of the property lines (the house in question is in the middle of the photo with the roughly trapezoid-shaped lot) and I outlined in red the back of the property where I thought I'd establish the little pastures. I also included a quick image of how I see setting up the enclosure and shed. It isn't remotely drawn to scale nor is it the right shape but I just did a quick sketch with what Word had to offer. The area outlined in red has a perimeter of 18+29+29+31 m, which is about 59+95+95+101 ft. I have roughly estimated the area to be about .20 of an acre. I know that isn't very big.
I would like to set up permanent fencing, although I have read the posts here on the moveable 16x16 panels. I just see permanent fencing working better for me, to be honest. It's more work and cost to establish at first but it seems easier in the long run. What I'm wondering, is if I have a small sacrifice area around the shed with gates that open to each little pasture, would it at all be enough space to rotate 2 does around in a climate where grass/weeds/shrubs are pretty darn lush throughout much of the growing season? The brown path is what I intend to use to get back and forth to the goat shed/yard, and then the four irregular shapes would be the small pastures. Is this just WAY too small to work? Or could I potentially keep them on one for about 5-7 days before switching them, particularly if I brought them freshly cut browse to put in the yard?
I ask because it would be a strong factor in my interest in this property. It's an affordable house in a great area with some key features we'd like to have but I truly desire more land. If we could make it work though, it might be the best option for us right now.
Replies
Sometimes I just happen to be on the computer at the right time! Unfortunately it doesn't always work out, but it's nice when it does!
Thank you Deborah! I don't know how you are always so quick to respond to everyone. That is quite encouraging and I'll check out the backyard a bit more closely when we go to see it Saturday.
That looks like it can work for a small herd. Our buck pens are 60 X 60 (feet), and two or three bucks can stay in there for a lot longer than they should. In other words, they can't eat all the grass before they should be rotated to another area.